Welcome to the 253rd edition of The Christian Carnival, the Advent (conspiracy) Edition. In honor of this being the first C.C. of Advent '08, I thought I'd spruce up this edition with a scattering of videos from an idea that is near and dear to my heart, and is gaining a lot of momentum (please God!).

I'd say more about it, but that's not how conspiracies operate.

Enjoy your trip around the Carnival.

...and spread the word.

Paul Kuritz presents Jesus the Vampire Slayer posted at Paul Kuritz: Opinions. A nice review of "Called Out of Darkness," Anne Rice's recently-released testimony of faith.

Richard H. Anderson presents Second Harvest posted at dokeo kago grapho soi kratistos Theophilos, reminding us that miracles don't necessarily have to be out of this world, just not of this world.



FMF presents Free Money Finance: What Truly Matters, Part 3 posted at Free Money Finance, calling it another example of "Where faith and money mesh."

Anne K. presents A scroll of remembrance posted at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength, summarizing, "Weekend Fisher draws on some Biblical resources to bring God's blessings on some holiday tension among the relatives."

Yvette Nietzen presents Ministry opportunities are right in front of you posted at Fresh Wind Ministries, Int´l. Mine are usually right in front of the mirror.



Chris Brooks presents The Serpent's Bane posted at Homeward Bound, calling it "An Advent reflection on Jesus as the fulfillment of the promise to Eve."

Allen Scott presents With Hearts and Hands and Voices posted at A View from the Nest, of which he says "Everyone has passion. Some for wealth and security, some for social status and prestige, some have a passion for a sport, or artistic expression. What are you passionate about?"

Rodney Olsen presents All I want for Christmas posted at The Journey - Life : Faith : Family. Rodney must've heard this was gonna be the Advent (conspiracy) Edition. Seriously, though, a must read...and pass it on!



Annette presents Just who is Melchizadek? posted at Fish and Cans, asking the intriguing questions: "Just who is Melchizadek? How is he related to the Christ?"

Diane R presents Give Me MY Aristotlian Logic Please posted at Crossroads: Where Faith and Inquiry Meet, saying, "There is a struggle today between postmodern Christians, who follow postmodern philosophy, and the rest of us older folks who tend to follow Cartesian and Aristotlelian thinking and logic." There is indeed. So lets talk with each other.

Wickle presents Christmas Songs: Joy to the World! posted at A True Believer's Weblog, beginning a series on well-known but sometimes under-appreciated Christmas songs with "Joy to the World!" A great idea.

A Sower presents Dead Tree, Live Tree posted at A Sower's Heart. Read this before putting up your Christmas tree this year.



Sherry Early presents Dating the Gospels posted at Sherry Early. If you find this stuff interesting, I'd recommend N.T. Wright's Judas and the Gospel of Jesus.

Minister Mamie L. Pack presents The Phone Booth posted at The Life I Now Live. An interesting metaphor.

Jeremy Pierce presents Is Barack Obama an Evangelical? posted at Parableman. Everything Jeremy writes is insightful and generally awesome. This one's no exception.

Drew Tatusko presents Psychotic Capitalism on Black Friday posted at Notes From Off Center. A sad but fitting conclusion.

That's it. Hope you enjoyed the videos. I know you enjoyed the posts.

Oh, and if you've watched these videos and are still thinking of giving away "stuff" this Christmas, please watch The Story of Stuff first. If you haven't seen it yet, it might be the most eye-opening 20 minutes you'll ever spend in front of a computer.

OK, now that's really it. If you had fun at the Carnival, submit your post to the next edition using the carnival submission form. Visit the blog carnival index page for more details.

Grace and Peace,
Raffi
...and spread the word.